Page 5 - Aerotech News and Review, April 2, 2021

RECORDERS, from 4
quisition system that will use the latest advancements in technol-
ogy, with cutting edge hardware and software capabilities, so that
NASA can capture the high-quality sonic boom data they need,”
said Darren Fraser, Crystal Instruments vice president of sales.
The first deliveries of the CI-GRS are expected to be deployed
for initial field testing at NASA Armstrong, and later, some will
deploy outside Edwards Air Force Base with units spread out as
a 30-nautical-mile-long ground microphone array. This will be
part of the next rounds of the Carpet Determination in Entirety
Measurements flights, called CarpetDIEM for short.
These flights will simulate the acoustic validation phase for
the X-59 by deploying an aircraft from NASA Armstrong, which
will fly over the array at supersonic speeds, testing the units’
ability to record sonic boom data, before they capture the X-59’s
quiet sonic thumps.
The lessons learned from the CarpetDIEM tests will facilitate
any necessary updates and modifications for the final CI-GRS
design, which will then be used in the same method for the X-59
with as many as 70 ground recording stations.
Another requirement NASA will need the CI-GRS to meet will
be its ability to operate remotely. In previous, similar supersonic
acoustic research efforts, NASA deployed sonic boom record-
ers in the field, and collected the sensors at the end of each test
day. A 30-mile-long microphone array in the Mojave Desert,
however, presents a logistical challenge.
“This ground recording system will be more robust and rug-
gedized when it comes to its operational use, and that’s what we
anticipate, with the ability to deploy for several days at a time,”
said Cliatt. “These will also incorporate two-way communica-
tions so that they can be deployed over a large area when the
X-59 flies over communities starting in 2024, so the ultimate
total of 175 of these can be controlled from a single remote host.”
The next CarpetDIEM flights are expected for late 2021.
“The CI-GRS is going to be a first of its kind, much like the
X-59, and I think there will be a lot of firsts in a new age of po- NASA photograph by Lauren Hughes
tential commercial supersonic travel,” said Fraser. “We think this As part of the Carpet Determination in Entirety Measurements flight series, called CarpetDIEM for short, NASA will test the CI-GRS,
will set the stage for the future, and I think that’s what everybody using traditional sonic booms from an F/A-18 in supersonic flight. These tests will provide lessons learned as NASA prepares to capture
the X-59’s quiet sonic thumps during the acoustic validation and community overflight phases of its mission.
wants to look toward.”

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